10/19/14

Talking To Your Child About Bullying Using "The Bully and The Shrimp!" - Alexandra

*This post is sponsored by Parragon Books. We are a member of their Book Buddies program and received all books mentioned at no cost to use for review or article purposes!*

Did you know that each year over 3.2 million students are victims of bullying. By age 14 less than 30% of boys and 40% of girls will talk to peers about bullying. Approximately 160,000 teens skip school every day because of bullying. 17% of students in the USA report being bullied two or three times a month or more. We find that these are alarming statistics and that bullying is 100% preventable so we are teaming up with Parragon books to celebrate National Bullying Prevention Month. Talking to your child about tough topics such as bullying can be very difficult so we wanted to give some tips on how to talk to your child about bullying, what you can do about bullying, and more. Keep reading to find out ways to start this important conversation!
In the book "The Bully and the Shrimp" by Catherine Allison and Kim Geyer, Noah Shrimpton who is small for his age moves to a new school. At this new school the class bully starts to pick on him. Noah starts a journal to express himself and begins drawing scenarios where he beats the bully! Throughout this book Noah makes friends, gains confidence, and stands up to the bully! This picture book deals with the issue of bullying in a way that is easy for children to relate to so it perfect for school aged children.

We recommend reading "The Bully and the Shrimp" with your child. Below are questions that you can use as an outline to talk to your child about bullying.

How do you think that Noah felt when Connor called him Shrimp-boy and did other mean things to him like spilling juice on his shirt or making fun of him?

When Noah talked to Ellie about what Connor was doing and Ellie told Noah she was his friend how do you think he felt?

How do you think that Noah felt when he told Connor to stop and Ellie stood up to Connor with him?

Do you think that it was Noah's fault he was being bullied?

What do you think that you should do if you see a friend being bullied? What about if you are being bullied?

Things to make sure your children know about bullying:

It is very important when talking to children about bullying that you mention that anyone can be a victim of bullying. They need to be aware that they are not weak or at fault.

If they are being bullied they should talk to someone such as a parent, teacher, or friend about what is happening and how they are feeling. It is very important for children to feel as though they have an ally.

If they feel they are being bullied or they see someone else being bullied tell them to try to stand up for themselves or others. If they feel that they are or someone else is in danger telling an adult immediately is a better option

Walking away is a good way to handle a bully. Children need to know that they do not have to listen to or take his/her abuse.

It is important to be an ally for another child if they are being bullied. Children being bullied often need a friend or someone to talk to. One of the best things another child can do is be there for them.

If your child does not feel comfortable talking to someone doing something like keeping a journal or sketchbook can help them to write down or draw their feelings.

Make sure that they are aware that their words can hurt others and that they need to think of the feelings of others. Also inform them that before they say something they should think about how it would make them feel if it was said to them. Often children do not know the power of their words, it is up to us to make sure that they know.

There are many signs that you can look for to see if your child may be being bullied such as: unusual mood swings, sudden reluctance to go to school, and often an inability to eat or sleep

If you know that a child is being bullied it is important to handle the situation.

Explain to the child they it is not their fault and they are brave for coming forward.

Depending on your relationship to the bully will depend on you address the situation. You can go to their parents, teacher, administration, or other adults in charge of the environment that your child is being bullied in.

If you feel that your child may be bullying someone talk to them about it. Express that you do not like that they are being mean and that if it continues there will be consequences. Make sure that they know that you do not love them any less but that you do not like they are bullying someone.

8 comments:

The statistics you mentioned are truly upsetting. My two oldest girls are in school now and I am always terrified of them being bullied. But I also am not naive enough to think they would never be the bully and so this seems like a great book to get and ready together. Thanks for sharing!

Bullying is so terrible! It's sad to hear that most kids have been bullied at least once in their lifetime. I would hate to see any of my daughters get bullied. This seems like a really good book. Sounds like it teaches them a lot about bullying.

I need this book for my 9 year old. He's autistic and deals with bullying on the school bus and even in school, on the playground. I've taught him that bullies are just insecure people but maybe reading this might actually help him to understand bullying a lot more.

This is a great book. JUst yesterday, my son laid down on the couch and when he raised his arm, I saw a bruise. I asked him what happened and he said that one of his classmates did it. I got alarmed. I will be going to school to further investigate.

I hate the idea of bullying but I am interested in all of the movements and programs that have been on the rise lately for prevention. I'll probably check out that book for my younger siblings. Thanks for sharing!

Hello!

It's a Mom Thing Reviews and More is a parenting blog started by Alexandra and Gina as a resource for other moms! Here you will find product reviews, giveaways, recipes, crafts, and more. Our blog is a geared toward moms, because who understands motherhood better than other moms? Sometimes it's just a mom thing!